Nurse Preceptor Role in New Graduate Nurses' Transition to Practice

The transition to practice period is a challenging and demanding time for new graduate nurses. Leaving the structured environment of nursing school and entering professional practice can cause reality and transition shock for the new nurse resulting in unsafe patient care, as well as intention to leave their position or the profession. Successful transition to practice depends on the new nurse building confidence and gaining essential clinical reasoning abilities while orienting to their role. In critical care settings, patient care is more complex and fast-paced, which adds another dimension of overall stress to the new graduate. Structured orientation programs with trained preceptors have been found to be the most successful means of preparing new graduate nurses for clinical practice. Ensuring preceptors are provided with education related to the development of clinical reasoning is essential to successfully assist new nurses in their transition to practice. Safe and effective patient care, especially in the critical care unit, is dependent upon having nurses who are well prepared for their role through being provided guidance and support from trained preceptors.